1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is related to devices for timekeeping, and more particularly to clocks and the like which convey time of day information by symbolic indication rather than position of rotating hands.
2. Description of the Prior Art
There exists today an extremely wide variety of devices for keeping time. Such devices may measure the quantity of time that has elapsed from the occurrence of an event, such as the start of a race, or measure the time that has elapsed from some local reference such as midnight or noon for a local time zone (for example, 2:35 p.m. indicates two hours and 35 minutes after 12:00 noon for that time zone). The measure of elapsed time may be indicated in a variety of ways. For example, elapsed time may be indicated by position of a rotating long pointer (hand) to indicate elapsed minutes and a rotating short pointer (hand) to indicate elapsed hours (i.e., traditional mechanical clocks). The face of such clocks are commonly divided up circumferentially into 12 equally-spaced positions, one for each elapsed hour, and the circumferential space between each hour location divided into 5 equally-spaced positions, one for each elapsed minute; There are myriad variations to this design, motivated by reducing cost and complexity, aesthetics, available technology, ease of use, improved accuracy, whimsy, etc.
Of relevance here are designs in which the physical hands indicating hours and minutes are replaced with alternative methods of indicating elapsed time. Perhaps the most prevalent design alternative to the traditional hand-design for clocks are what are commonly known as “digital clocks”, those in which time is indicated by the display of the numerical digits for hours and minutes. However, there are many other hand-free designs known, such as those simulating hands, as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,254,489, and those indicating elapsed time by displaying a series of indicia, such as dots or line segments, not arranged in hand-like patterns. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,041,692 provides three concentric rings of light emitting diodes (LEDs), with one ring of 60 LEDs indicating elapsed seconds, one ring of 60 LEDs radially inward from the first indicating elapsed minutes, and one radially inner-most ring of 12 LEDs indicating elapsed hours. The large number of indicators renders this design expensive to manufacture, relatively difficult to read, and prone to failure. Perhaps motivated by these challenges, another example, disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,459,034, reduces the total number of required LEDs by providing a main display area with a reduced number of minute indicators, each indicating 2.5 elapsed minutes, and an auxiliary display portion for indicating elapsed individual elapsed minutes. A variation on this design is disclosed by U.S. Pat. No. 4,370,068, in which minutes are indicated by a first group of indicators in increments of 5 minutes, and by a second group of indicators in increments of 1 minute. The indicators in each of these examples are arranged in a generally circular pattern, employing the familiarity and experience users have with traditional hand-based based clocks.
Another set of devices are designed to forego this familiar circular design and any other similarity to traditional clocks. Illuminated indicia are most often used to provide a count, in one form or another, of elapsed hours, minutes, and seconds. Elapsed time is often displayed in a code or unique sequence of indicators. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 3,750,384 displays time in three rows of indicators using a binary code system. For example, minute indicators are provided for 1, 2, 4, 8, 16, and 32 minutes, and actual minutes elapsed are represented by combinations of the illumination of these indicators. Another example is U.S. Pat. No. 5,896,348, which discloses three groups of indicators, the first group consisting of 12 indicators, one for each elapsed hour, the second consisting of 5 indicators, one for each 10 minutes elapsed, and the third group consisting of 9 indicators, one for each elapsed minute. Hours are read by counting the number of indicators illuminated in the first group. Minutes are read by multiplying the number of indicators in the second group by 10, then adding the number of indicators illuminated in the third group.
While each of the aforementioned devices for indicating elapsed time meet a particular need or interest, some have shortcomings which motivate the search for new and improved designs. Whether for practical or aesthetic reasons, curiosity, or a combination of each of these, there is perpetually a need and interest for novel ways of indicating time. The present invention, described in detail below, addresses this need and interest.